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5 Waze I Fell in Love with a Navigation App

TMCnet Feature

August 09, 2013

5 Waze I Fell in Love with a Navigation App

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By Stefania Viscusi
Assignment Desk Editor

Some say falling in love is hard to do. While this might be true in personal relations, I’ve found falling in love with technology is much easier. After all, when the next best thing comes along, you can usually just ditch the old and move on with the new – no strings attached.


I spend up to three hours typically on the days I commute to the office due to highly congested roadways. To get me through this, I depend on the radio, someone to talk to and a GPS.

I’ve had a number of bad experiences with my clunky GPS unit in the past – satellites not retrieving a signal in time and missing my exit, being led to dead end roads that no longer exist, or just forgetting to put the device in my purse before I hit the road. So I divorced myself from that a while ago.

Because I don’t know my way around the back roads or any of the many towns in between my office and home, I have spent many times sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic just waiting to get through it – never trying to find another route.

One day during my usual water cooler talk with colleagues, someone told me to check out Waze. I heard about the app only because it made headlines when Google confirmed its acquisition just days before.

Since it was free and something I could access right from my phone, I decided to download it the next morning before I hit the road to work. Since our first encounter, I have found love and have been faithful to the app ever since.

While 45 miles each way is enough to make me crazy – I know there are people who have double that time on the road every day (kudos to you all) – Waze is truly an App for us. As a social traffic and navigation app, it uses real-time road reports from other drivers nearby and makes being on the road a little more bearable.

Here are the five reasons I have been struck by cupid’s arrow:

Page 1 of 5

1. It’s Free

Remember when getting a GPS unit was an investment? $300 for a device you would have to constantly update and might become useless in a few years? Not only the price – but leaving the unit on your window was an easy target for thieves. Waze is an app you download right to the phone you already use and carry with you everyday, and there is no cost associated with using it. The company still has a way to generate income by way of location-based advertising , which makes lots of sense on this App. Need a nearby pharmacy but aren’t familiar with the area? Hungry and in need of a quick bite? I’ve driven through towns with the app running so that it displays what kinds of locations I was passing by so I could get off an exit or re-route as needed. Clever move, advertisers.
Page 2 of 5

2. It’s Simple

Using Waze is super simple. Just open the app and click on a saved location or find an address, wait for the route and go. The app stays open as you drive and provides voice-activated directions so you don’t have to hold or look at your phone. Instead, drivers can pay attention to the road and listen for the commands on where to go. In addition to directions, the voice also alerts you to hazards ahead, police activity, and anything else to keep you in the know about where you are headed. Sure beats the horrible pain staking process of using Maps on an iPhone (News - Alert) 4 and literally having to thumb through steps on the screen and try to read what to do next before you actually get to that point.
Page 3 of 5

3. It’s Fun

Not only does Waze make your commute more efficient time and travel wise – but it incorporates an element of social activity and gaming we’ve all come to enjoy today . I haven’t had lots of time to play with these yet – but the additional layer of fun and interaction is certainly unique. It allows people who are traveling to socialize and get to know who is around them as well as make connections. You can also create a personal profile and an icon that will represent you to other Wazers on the road as well as chat with others who are riding by you or in your area. Other fun things to do include the ability to earn points and “road goodies” as well as unlock rank levels. The Waze website even notes the potential to win real world prizes. Count me in!
Page 4 of 5

4. It’s Intelligent

Waze simply makes your navigation around the road much more intelligent. Not only because its constantly being updated by actual people in the area, but because its also able to alert you of upcoming hazards, traffic jams and even trick and tips for getting to a location faster. I have personally driven down the same road everyday to get on the highway and head home. Waze has taught me a back road around those five traffic lights on the congested main road that has saved me 10-20 minutes just to get onto the highway ramp as well as unneeded frustration for the commute home. Nearby drivers using Waze make it possible for the system to know if there is a stopped car on the shoulder, a police trap ahead or even where to get the best priced gas along your route.
Page 5 of 5

5. I can Pay it Forward

Nothing feels as great as being in love as the feeling of being able to give something back to others. Waze gives you a chance to pay it forward, because you’re not just helping yourself get around faster and more intelligently – you can check in and even verify a hazard is actually where it was reported. In the end, company officials say Waze is all about contributing to the “common good” out there on the road. With the app, drivers connect to one another and form a local “driving community” where they can play an active role and work together to improve the quality of everyone's daily driving.



Edited by Stefania Viscusi


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